The Cayuga Inlet / Flood Control Channel in Ithaca is starting to open up. Monday evening as I left the taxi depot, which is right next to the Fish Ladder, I saw a quarter mile of water in the middle of the channel. There was one Tundra Swan along with three American Black Ducks, and a few of the more usual Canada Geese, Mallards, and Common Mergansers. I didn't wear boots to hike beyond the parking lot for other vantages, so there may have been more individuals or species.
Although Mallards have been frequenting the parking lot and entrance area of Wegmans in Ithaca, seemingly because the relief channel alongside the parking lot has been frozen, they actually have open water just downstream from Malone Dr and partway to State St, which was packed with a couple hundred Mallards, but no other species I could see. Fall Creek is also open from the RR by NYS-13 and between Renwick Wildwood and the wood chip pile on Pier Rd, and more narrowly so by the parking area at the end of the road. I didn't have the chance yesterday to see who inhabits it, but in the depths of the cold awhile back I saw 2 Red-breasted Mergansers and a Common Goldeneye, which are pretty neat to see inland. Maybe there's enough water for a Phoebe to stop there. On NYS-89 in Romulus just south of and across from Dean's Cove an Osprey nest that had been directly atop a power pole has been replaced by an new but empty platform. I hope the former inhabitants like it well enough to gather a new supply of sticks. They may not appreciate it but their fire risk will be greatly reduced. >From Harris Park on Sunday there were two polynyi, a small one at the end of >the stone pier and a large one farther west. The larger one had many swans (a >couple hundred?, mostly Tundras, but at least 2 Mutes) plus many ducks. It was >a scope project. At Mud lock a handful of Tundra Swans rested on the ice along >the far side near just upstream from the dam, but a pair of Trumpeter Swans >was hidden among some pilings with big skirts of ice. A few Mute Swans were among the many Tundra Swans scattered along the west shore of the middle part of Cayuga Lake where there was open water in Varick and near Sheldrake. The large polynya off Myers Point held many ducks on Sunday, including Surf and White-winged Scoters and a pair of WOOD DUCKS which Susan Danskin picked out. There were many Mallards around the edges but I didn't see any other Anas than a few American Black Ducks and a couple of Northern Pintail. That should be changing. At Glenwood Point (the Ithaca Yacht Club) there was at least one male American Wigeon. Non-ducks at sunset on Sunday included a COMMON LOON, 5 or 6 RED-THROATED LOONS, 1 or 2 RED-NECKED GREBES, 4 HORNED GREBES, and a DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT. Earlier a PIED-BILLED GREBE was photographed there. Although there were rumors of Trumpeter Swan there, I am unconvinced yet; all I saw were Tundras. All SIX species of Aythya were present and close along with all 3 mergansers, and both usual Bucephala. An immature Bald Eagle also kept things interesting. --Dave Nutter On Mar 09, 2015, at 12:01 AM, job121...@verizon.net wrote: > Two new osprey platforms have been placed atop elec. poles: one across from > Union Springs High School driveway at the water plant. Another is north of the > RR track at the 2nd fire lane. Can't think of the name on the driveway sign or > what the firelane no. is. Maybe there are only crossed oars on the sign. > > Down Backus Rd. in Hibiscus Harbor is a nest in a bad location, ... on top of > a pole > which has 2 transformers on it. Some sticks actually rest on the > transformers. With > leaves off trees, now is the time to be looking for such nests & to let > Candace Cornell > know about them since she is co-ordinating such information. > > Open water north of the RR bridge/Harris Park is refuge for great nos. of > ducks & swans > but few geese at this time. A few tiny areas just south of Harris Park had > some open > water with mostly common mergansers. The channel from the RR bridge to the > lock is > mostly open & full of ducks. I saw many common & red-breasted mergs, > goldeneye, > redhead, canvasbacks, redheads & scaup. Whatever else was there, I didn't > take time to > look ... oh yes, maybe 60 + swans & less than a doz. Canadas. What amazed me > was > the great number of ducks right at the lock & also on the river south of 5 & > 20. > > In Auburn I saw many ring billed (garbage) gulls over the Bed, Bath & Beyond > mall parking > lot but only two north of Cayuga. Saw no evidence of eagle activity on the > nest at Mud Lock. > Out on the ice at Mud Lock I saw a female common merganser that looked > disoriented with > feathers that appeared to be quite water soaked. She didn't look healthy. > > Along Rte. 90 north of the Lettie Cook Woods entrance were 2 dead deer lying > together along > the shoulder, the first road kill I've seen in maybe 2 mos.. Becky released a > male skunk from > her neighbor's live trap this evening. :>) He stomped his feet repeatedly at > her & curled his tail > up over his back but she said sweet nothings in his ears as she covered the > trap with a blanket, > put him in her car & took him away from the very worried neighbor. > > Tomorrow, despite all I have to do that is more important, I hope to go to > Oswego & look for the > magnificent male harlequin on the Oswego river below the bridge. Hopefully he > will spend another > day there. > > Fritzie, Union Springs > -- > Cayugabirds-L List Info: > Welcome and Basics > > Rules and Information > > Subscribe, Configuration and Leave > > Archives: > The Mail Archive > > Surfbirds > > BirdingOnThe.Net > > Please submit your observations to eBird! > -- -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
